GM’s sales plummet in February
Podcast Episode
Kyle Geissler talks with Janesville Gazette business editor Jim Leute about GM's February sales numbers.
JANESVILLE — An extra day of sales in February couldn’t help General Motors, which reported Monday that its monthly sales were 13 percent behind those posted in February 2007.
Led by impressive sales performances of the Chevrolet Malibu and Cadillac CTS, GM’s car sales were down 1.2 percent.
The real sales laggard, however, was the automaker’s truck lineup, which posted a sales decline of 20 percent in February.
Even worse, February sales of the full-size sport utility vehicles built in Janesville were 33 percent lower than those posted in February 2007.
Chevrolet Suburban sales were down 36.7 percent, while those of the Chevy Tahoe dropped 26.4 percent. Deliveries of GMC Yukon XLs fell 39.2 percent and sales of GMC Yukons were down 38.5 percent.
The four SUVs built in Janesville are also produced at GM plants in Arlington, Texas, and Silao, Mexico.
“We are encouraged by our performance in the key passenger car categories, and while the overall market for trucks is challenging, we anticipate holding our share for full-size pickups and utilities,” said Mark LaNeve, vice president of GM North America Vehicle Sales, Service and Marketing.
With rising fuel prices and a slowing economy, SUV and pickup truck sales aren’t expected to rebound anytime soon.
A United Auto Workers strike against supplier American Axle already has suspended production at five GM truck plants in North America and is expected to shut down the Janesville plant as early as Wednesday.
Starting next month, the local plant will slow production from 52 jobs an hour to 44, a move GM officials have said is necessary to better align production with expected consumer demand.
That sagging demand is most evident at dealer lots, where GM has more than a 150-day supply of pickups and more than 100 days’ worth of full-size SUVS, according to Erich Merkle, vice president of auto industry forecasting for the consulting form of IRN Inc. in Grand Rapids, Mich.
Dealers typically prefer a 60- to 65-day supply of vehicles.
In February, LaNeve told The Janesville Gazette that even though full-size SUV segment has been shrinking, GM has continued to keep its market share at about 70 percent.
“We’ve been fortunate that we have new products in the market that are the best products—the Tahoe, Yukon, Suburban and Escalade,” LaNeve said in an interview at the Chicago Auto Show.
“We plan on vigorously defending that high-share position, and we’ve done it successfully so far.”
LaNeve said GM isn’t counting on significant growth in the segment, but added the automaker doesn’t expect sales to drop much lower.
Among other automakers reporting Monday, Ford said its sales slumped 7 percent and Toyota reported a 2.8 percent drop. Honda and Nissan improved their sales.
The automakers said the comparison of February 2008 to February 2007 was difficult because last February’s sales marked the high-water mark for 2007.
Material from Gazette wire services was used in this story.
Mar 4, 2008 at 11:22 p.m.
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The corporation will always put a positive spin on the situation, until they close the doors.
Simply maintaining market share when the market is shrinking equals less production.
Mar 4, 2008 at 8:22 p.m.
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don't just look at price look at milage.i for one will not buy that kind of a gas hog and beside if you look close how many of the parts are from America. it is just assembled here. but then again so is tyota and others. i for one don't make the kind of money. to pay for the big gm suv. i conld not pay for the gas for one of them.
Mar 4, 2008 at 4:53 p.m.
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This is no surprise. American auto makers are clearly in decline. I buy only American autos, but it clearly is going to take more than just my purchases to keep these companies afloat. A sad time for the American auto industry.
Mar 4, 2008 at 1:10 p.m.
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if u look at the price u see why sales are going down
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